Retail marijuana purchases in designer and commercial markets in New York City: sales units, weights, and prices per gram

"The Perfect Formula:" Evaluating Health Claims, Products and Pricing on Cannabis Dispensary Websites in Two Recently Legalized States

Introduction: Many cannabis dispensaries market and sell their products online through websites designed to attract and maintain customers; often, these websites incorporate a variety of product claims and other marketing tactics. This study evaluated website content, product pricing and discounts on dispensary websites in California and Nevada, states that legalized recreational cannabis in 2016. Methods: We content coded product availability, marketing claims and discounts on cannabis dispensary websites in the San Francisco Bay Area (N = 34) and Reno (N = 15) from March to June 2020 using a web crawler to scrape pricing information for four product types. We conducted bivariate analyses comparing both locations. Results: Prices were significantly lower for flower, edibles, and concentrates in Reno compared to the Bay Area, but not cartridges. In both areas, a range of marketing claims were made regarding the health effects of certain products. The most common were that cannabis products treated pain, nausea/vomiting, spasms, anxiety, insomnia, and depression. Products were also said to promote creativity and euphoria. Other marketing claims related to potency, pleasure enhancement, and improved social interactions. Discounts targeted to senior citizens and veterans were found on over half of all websites. Conclusions: Dispensary websites in the Bay Area and Reno frequently make health-related claims which should not be allowed in absence of scientific evidence. Non-health related claims are similar to those used for selling e-cigarettes and other tobacco products. Monitoring cannabis dispensary websites provides insight into local sales tactics and may help identify subpopulations for research on behavioral impacts of cannabis marketing activities.

The state of clinical outcome assessments for cannabis use disorder clinical trials: A review and research agenda

There is considerable variability in the use of outcome measures in clinical trials for cannabis use disorder (CUD), and a lack of consensus regarding optimal outcomes may have hindered development and approval of new pharmacotherapies. The goal of this paper is to summarize an evaluation of assessment measures and clinical endpoints for CUD clinical trials, and propose a research agenda and priorities to improve CUD clinical outcome assessments. The primary recommendation is that sustained abstinence from cannabis should not be considered the primary outcome for all CUD clinical trials as it has multiple limitations. However, there are multiple challenges to the development of a reliable and valid indicator of cannabis reduction, including the lack of a standard unit of measure for the various forms of cannabis and products and the limitations of currently available biological and self-report assessments. Development of a core toolkit of assessments is needed to both allow flexibility for study design, while facilitating interpretation of outcomes across trials. Four primary agenda items for future research are identified to expedite development of improved clinical outcome assessments for this toolkit: (1) determine whether minimally invasive biologic assays could identify an acute level of cannabis use associated with psychomotor impairment or other cannabis-related harms; (2) create an indicator of quantity of cannabis use that is consistent across product types; (3) examine the presence of cannabis-specific functional outcomes; and (4) identify an optimal duration to assess changes in CUD diagnostic criteria.

Blunts versus joints: Cannabis use characteristics and consequences among treatment-seeking adults

BACKGROUND

Despite the high prevalence of blunt smoking among cannabis users, very few studies examine the clinical profile of blunt smokers relative to those using more common methods of cannabis use, such as joints.

METHODS

The current study uses baseline data from the ACCENT (Achieving Cannabis Cessation-Evaluating N-acetylcysteine Treatment) study, a multi-site randomized pharmacotherapy clinical trial within the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network, to predict the association between blunt and joint use frequency and cannabis use characteristics (e.g., grams of cannabis used) and consequences (e.g., withdrawal) among past-month cannabis users (N = 377) who were screened for study participation.

RESULTS

After controlling for race, age, gender, other forms of cannabis use (including joint use) and nicotine dependence, multivariable linear regression models indicated that the number of days of blunt use in the past month was a significant predictor of the average amount of cannabis per using day (t = 3.04, p <  .01), the estimated average cost of cannabis (t = 2.28, p <  .05) and Cannabis Withdrawal Scale scores (t = 1.94, p <  .05). Frequency of joint use did not significantly predict any of the cannabis use characteristics or consequences.

CONCLUSIONS

Blunt smokers may present to treatment with greater amounts of cannabis smoked and more intense withdrawal symptoms, which may adversely impact their likelihood of successful abstinence. Cannabis-dependent blunt smokers may be more likely to benefit from treatment that targets physiological and mood-related withdrawal symptoms.

A Cost-Effectiveness Model for Adjunctive Smoked Cannabis in the Treatment of Chronic Neuropathic Pain

Background: A recent meta-analysis affirmed the benefit of medicinal cannabis for chronic neuropathic pain, a disabling and difficult-to-treat condition. As medicinal cannabis use is becoming increasingly prevalent among Americans, an exploration of its economic feasibility is warranted. We present this cost-effectiveness analysis of adjunctive cannabis pharmacotherapy for chronic peripheral neuropathy.

Materials and Methods: A published Markov model comparing conventional therapies for painful diabetic neuropathy was modified to include arms for augmenting first-line, second-line (if first-line failed), or third-line (if first- and second-line failed) therapies with smoked cannabis. Microsimulation of 1,000,000 patients compared the cost (2017 U.S. dollars) and effectiveness (quality-adjusted life years [QALYs]) of usual care with and without adjunctive cannabis using a composite of third-party and out-of-pocket costs. Model efficacy inputs for cannabis were adapted from clinical trial data. Adverse event rates were derived from a prospective study of cannabis for chronic noncancer pain and applied to probability inputs for conventional therapies. Cannabis cost was derived from retail market pricing. Parameter uncertainty was addressed with one-way and probabilistic sensitivity analysis.

Results: Adding cannabis to first-line therapy was incrementally less effective and costlier than adding cannabis to second-line and third-line therapies. Third-line adjunctive cannabis was subject to extended dominance, that is, the second-line strategy was more effective with a more favorable incremental cost-effectiveness ratio of $48,594 per QALY gained, and therefore, third-line adjunctive cannabis was not as cost-effective. At a modest willingness-to-pay threshold of $100,000/QALY gained, second-line adjunctive cannabis was the strategy most likely to be cost-effective.

Conclusion: As recently proposed willingness-to-pay thresholds for the United States health marketplace range from $110,000 to $300,000 per QALY, cannabis appears cost-effective when augmenting second-line treatment for painful neuropathy. Further research is warranted to explore the long-term benefit of smoked cannabis and standardization of its dosing for chronic neuropathic pain.

Marijuana sources in a medical marijuana environment: dynamics in access and use among a cohort of young adults in Los Angeles, California

While a range of sources exist for marijuana users to acquire marijuana for medical or personal use, prior research on marijuana sources primarily focused on single sources. In this analysis, we longitudinally examined characteristics of multiple sources selected by marijuana users, motivations to use sources, and how a blend of marijuana sources accommodated users' needs. Young adult marijuana users (n=60) in Los Angeles, CA, where marijuana has been legal for medical use since 1996, completed two annual qualitative interviews on marijuana use practices and sources between 2014 and 2016. Approximately two-thirds were medical marijuana patients and one-third were non-patient users. Participants reported acquiring marijuana from the following primary sources across two interviews: dispensaries and delivery services, private sellers in the illicit market, friends and family, and marijuana events/conferences. While patients with legal medical access to marijuana typically purchased marijuana from dispensaries or delivery services, they often supplemented from other illicit sources. Non-patients often accessed marijuana through dispensary diversion but also other sources. As patients became non-patients and vice versa during the study period, source type changed too. Broad access to marijuana via legal and illicit sources in this sample is indicative of societal trends towards normalization of marijuana use.

Cannabis retail purchases in a low-risk market: Purchase size and sex of buyers

Aim

To analyse the composition of cannabis retail purchases in a representative sample of purchases made in Christiania, Copenhagen in 2004.

Material

Transactions (n=1,123) were registered along four variables; type (loose resin or joints), quantum (n=957, grams or number of joints), sex (n=559, female or male) and payment (n=707, notes or coins).

Results

We found that more than half of all transactions were for joints only. The median transaction quantum was small, at two joints or three grams of resin, valued at DKK 100. Of the resin transactions, 88% were three grams or below. Women made 11% of the purchases. There was no statistically significant difference in the preferences for quantum or type between males and females.

Conclusions

Buyers prefer joints over loose resin despite the higher price, which is interesting. The small median transactions size is consistent with findings in the international literature. Illicit drug buyers appear to prefer small acquisitions across drugs and social context. The share of purchases made by women is 11%, which is similar to the estimated proportion of women among daily cannabis users. This finding suggests an interesting question for future research. At what point in a cannabis-using career do users purchase their drugs? These findings contribute to the existing research by documenting the proportion of female buyers, and preferences for type and quantum in a sample that is representative of a market and is not based on self-reported purchases.

The effects of perceived quality on behavioral economic demand for marijuana: A web-based experiment

BACKGROUND

Given the growing legalization of recreational marijuana use and related increase in its prevalence in the United States, it is important to understand marijuana's appeal. We used a behavioral economic (BE) approach to examine whether the reinforcing properties of marijuana, including "demand" for marijuana, varied as a function of its perceived quality.

METHODS

Using an innovative, Web-based marijuana purchase task (MPT), a sample of 683 young-adult recreational marijuana users made hypothetical purchases of marijuana across three qualities (low, mid and high grade) at nine escalating prices per joint, ranging from $0/free to $20.

RESULTS

We used nonlinear mixed effects modeling to conduct demand curve analyses, which produced separate demand indices (e.g., P_max, elasticity) for each grade of marijuana. Consistent with previous research, as the price of marijuana increased, marijuana users reduced their purchasing. Demand also was sensitive to quality, with users willing to pay more for higher quality/grade marijuana. In regression analyses, demand indices accounted for significant variance in typical marijuana use.

CONCLUSIONS

This study illustrates the value of applying BE theory to young adult marijuana use. It extends past research by examining how perceived quality affects demand for marijuana and provides support for the validity of a Web-based MPT to examine the appeal of marijuana. Our results have implications for policies to regulate marijuana use, including taxation based on the quality of different marijuana products.

Marijuana practices and patterns of use among young adult medical marijuana patients and non-patient marijuana users

BACKGROUND

Little is known about young adult medical marijuana patients (MMP) and their marijuana using patterns and practices, which includes frequency of use, sourcing of marijuana products, forms/modes of administration, and patterns of illicit/prescription drug misuse, compared to non-patient marijuana users (NPU).

METHODS

Young adults (N=366) aged 18-26 years old were sampled in Los Angeles in 2014-15 and segmented into NPU (n=156), marijuana users who never had a medical marijuana (MM) recommendation, and MMP (n=210), marijuana users with a current, verified MM recommendation. Differences regarding self-reported marijuana and other drug use during the past 90days are expressed as unadjusted risk ratios or differences in means.

RESULTS

MMP reported significantly greater mean days of use (76.4 vs. 59.2, p<0.001) and mean dollars spent on marijuana products (564.5 vs. 266.9, p<0.001) than NPU. Approximately one-quarter (22.6%) of both MMP and NPU report selling marijuana obtained from a dispensary to someone else in the past 90days. MMP were more likely to report vaporization modalities for concentrates (URR=1.5, 95% C.I.=1.2, 2.0) and for marijuana (URR=1.5, 95% C.I.=1.1, 2.1) than NPU. Though not significant, trends toward lower misuse of prescription drugs in the past 90days were observed among MMP compared to NPU.

CONCLUSION

MMP reported greater access to marijuana via dispensaries, more frequent and intensive use of marijuana, and greater use of non-combustible forms of marijuana compared to NPU. MMP reported less recent misuse of prescription drugs compared to NPU.

Occupational and Environmental Contributions to Chronic Cough in Adults: Chest Expert Panel Report

BACKGROUND

In response to occupational and environmental exposures, cough can be an isolated symptom reflecting exposure to an irritant with little physiological consequence, or it can be a manifestation of more significant disease. This document reviews occupational and environmental contributions to chronic cough in adults, focusing on aspects not previously covered in the 2006 ACCP Cough Guideline or our more recent systematic review, and suggests an approach to investigation of these factors when suspected.

METHODS

MEDLINE and TOXLINE literature searches were supplemented by articles identified by the cough panel occupational and environmental subgroup members, to identify occupational and environmental aspects of chronic cough not previously covered in the 2006 ACCP Cough Guideline. Based on the literature reviews and the Delphi methodology, the cough panel occupational and environmental subgroup developed guideline suggestions that were approved after review and voting by the full cough panel.

RESULTS

The literature review identified relevant articles regarding: mechanisms; allergic environmental causes; chronic cough and the recreational and involuntary inhalation of tobacco and marijuana smoke; nonallergic environmental triggers; laryngeal syndromes; and occupational diseases and exposures. Consensus-based statements were developed for the approach to diagnosis due to a lack of strong evidence from published literature.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite increased understanding of cough related to occupational and environmental triggers, there remains a gap between the recommended assessment of occupational and environmental causes of cough and the reported systematic assessment of these factors. There is a need for further documentation of occupational and environmental causes of cough in the future.

Evolution of the United States Marijuana Market in the Decade of Liberalization Before Full Legalization

The past decade has seen a remarkable liberalization of marijuana policies in many parts of the United States. We analyze data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) for coinciding changes in the marijuana market from 2002 to 2013, including market size, number and demographics of customers, and varying means of acquiring the drug. Results suggests that (a) the national market has grown, especially in terms of the number of daily users; (b) marijuana users remained economically “downscale” over this period, and in many ways resemble cigarette users; (c) distribution networks appear to be professionalizing in a sense, as fewer users obtain marijuana socially; (d) the typical purchase has gotten smaller by weight but not price paid, suggestive of a trend toward higher potencies; (e) marijuana expenditures vary by user group; and (f) respondents with medical marijuana recommendations differ from other users in systematic ways.

Illicit Drug Markets Among New Orleans Evacuees Before and Soon After Hurricane Katrina

This paper analyzes illicit drug markets in New Orleans before and after Hurricane Katrina and access to drug markets following evacuation at many locations and in Houston. Among New Orleans arrestees pre-Katrina, rates of crack and heroin use and market participation was comparable to New York and higher than in other southern cities. Both cities have vigorous outdoor drug markets. Over 100 New Orleans evacuees provide rich accounts describing the illicit markets in New Orleans and elsewhere. The flooding of New Orleans disrupted the city's flourishing drug markets, both during and immediately after the storm. Drug supplies, though limited, were never completely unavailable. Subjects reported that alcohol or drugs were not being used in the Houston Astrodome, and it was a supportive environment. Outside the Astrodome, they were often approached by or could easily locate middlemen and drug sellers. Evacuees could typically access illegal drug markets wherever they went. This paper analyzes the impact of a major disaster upon users of illegal drugs and the illegal drug markets in New Orleans and among the diaspora of New Orleans evacuees following Hurricane Katrina. This analysis includes data from criminal justice sources that specify what the drug markets were like before this disaster occurred. This analysis also includes some comparison cities where no disaster occurred, but which help inform the similarities and differences in drug markets in other cities. The data presented also include an initial analysis of ethnographic interview data from over 100 New Orleans Evacuees recruited in New Orleans and Houston.

Bayesian inference for the distribution of grams of marijuana in a joint

BACKGROUND

The average amount of marijuana in a joint is unknown, yet this figure is a critical quantity for creating credible measures of marijuana consumption. It is essential for projecting tax revenues post-legalization, estimating the size of illicit marijuana markets, and learning about how much marijuana users are consuming in order to understand health and behavioral consequences.

METHODS

Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring data collected between 2000 and 2010 contain relevant information on 10,628 marijuana transactions, joints and loose marijuana purchases, including the city in which the purchase occurred and the price paid for the marijuana. Using the Brown-Silverman drug pricing model to link marijuana price and weight, we are able to infer the distribution of grams of marijuana in a joint and provide a Bayesian posterior distribution for the mean weight of marijuana in a joint.

RESULTS

We estimate that the mean weight of marijuana in a joint is 0.32g (95% Bayesian posterior interval: 0.30-0.35).

CONCLUSIONS

Our estimate of the mean weight of marijuana in a joint is lower than figures commonly used to make estimates of marijuana consumption. These estimates can be incorporated into drug policy discussions to produce better understanding about illicit marijuana markets, the size of potential legalized marijuana markets, and health and behavior outcomes.

Pills, Thrills and Bellyaches: Case Studies of Prescription Pill Use and Misuse among Marijuana/Blunt Smoking Middle Class Young Women

Recent survey research has documented important increases during the 2000s in the misuse and abuse of several prescription drugs (Vicodin, Percocet, Codeine, Dilaudid, Xanax, Klonopin, Valium, Ativan, Adderall, Ritalin, among others). This article focuses upon the patterns of pill use and misuse among young women who are middle-class white and college-educated, and they are also experienced marijuana users who report recreational consumption of other illegal drugs. The ethnographic data provides insights about various ways and reasons that such prescription pill misuse occurs among 12 college-educated, (upper) middle-class, white/Asian women in their 20s who were involved in a major ethnographic study of marijuana and blunts. Three patterns of pill use were observed: recreational; quasi-medical; and legal medical; shifts among these patterns of pill use was common. Few reported that their pill use interfered with their conventional jobs and lifestyles; they concealed such use from their employers and coworkers, and from non-using friends and family members. None reported contacts with police nor seeking treatment specifically for their pill misuse. Many reported misusing prescription pills in conjunction with illegal drugs (marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy) and alcohol. Pills were used as a way to enhance the euphoric effects of other drugs, as well as a way to avoid the negative side effects of illegal drugs. Some reported pill use as a means for reducing expenditures (and use of) alcohol and cocaine. The implications suggest a hidden subpopulation of prescription pill misusers among regular users of marijuana and other illegal drugs. Future research should include users and misusers of various pills to better understand how prescriptions pills interact with illegal drug use patterns.

Yield and turnover of illicit indoor cannabis (Cannabis spp.) plantations in Belgium

In prosecution, Belgian judiciary currently uses outdated yield figures (28.1g per plant, sold at € 3/g at grower level) for fining illicit indoor cannabis plantations. Using state-of-the-art cultivation techniques, our growth experiments showed that yield is better expressed in g/m(2) cultivated surface area rather than in g per plant, and that yield varies significantly between different cannabis strains. It was found that the lower-bound of the one-sided 95% confidence interval of the yield of an indoor cannabis plantation can be set at 575 g/m(2). Prices and pricing mechanisms were investigated using interviews with respondents selected through snowball sampling. Results reveal that (i) the Belgian cannabis market chain is highly complex; (ii) unit prices are predominantly determined by transaction sizes; but also (iii) a set of product- and socially-related price-fixing mechanisms have an equally important role. At grower level, respondents reported prices for 1 g of dry cannabis buds to range € 3.00-4.25.

Quantifying cannabis use with the timeline followback approach: a psychometric evaluation

BACKGROUND

In the absence of a standardized cannabis unit, self-report instruments are inadequate for accurate quantification of cannabis use. The study extends the feasibility of using a cannabis substitute to reliably and validly measure quantity of cannabis use.

METHOD

Ninety-eight adult Australian cannabis users (M age=27.98, SD=11.10; 65.31% male) completed a 90-day Timeline Followback interview regarding their cannabis use, utilizing the cannabis substitute Marijuanilla to report on quantity of use. Ninety-two of these individuals completed the interview at two time-points, and 56 of these participants had collaterals corroborate their cannabis use reports.

RESULTS

Inter-rater reliability was excellent, while test-retest reliability was good to excellent. Intra-class correlation coefficients between participant and collateral reports, while similar to previous research, were unacceptable. Quantity of cannabis use statistically significantly added to frequency of use in predicting cannabis problems and dependence severity. Concurrent and discriminant validity were established with single-item and positive impression management measures, respectively. In addition, Marijuanilla appeared similar to one specimen of street seized cannabis, but not to two others. Importantly, participants' cravings to use cannabis did not increase as a result of using the cannabis substitute to report on their cannabis use.

CONCLUSIONS

These data suggest that utilizing Marijuanilla to facilitate the reporting of grams of cannabis use may be reliable and valid; however, such comprehensive assessment may only be necessary for clinical trials and epidemiological studies, which rely on precise estimates of cannabis use.

Marijuana Price Gradients

California nearly legalized commercial marijuana production in 2010; in coming years, other states and California are expected to entertain similar proposals. This raises the question of whether marijuana diverted from legal production could displace current sources of marijuana in other states. Combining prior estimates of legal production cost with new estimates of the cost of smuggling within the United States suggests that in most states, diverted legal production would substantially undercut current prices. So, if one state legalized, then (illegal) interstate “exports” could depress marijuana prices throughout the United States, even if taxes are collected before diversion and export. The authors proxy smuggling costs by the current gradient in prices observed for Mexican or commercial-grade marijuana; based on seven different data sets, it appears to be roughly US$325 to US$475 per pound per 1,000 miles as one moves north from the Mexican border.

Quantification and comparison of marijuana smoking practices: blunts, joints, and pipes

The quantification method for collecting self-reported marijuana use data is not standardized as it is for alcohol or cigarettes, which presents a methodologic challenge for marijuana use disorder treatment studies. Serum and urine markers of marijuana use have a long half-life, limiting their utility as a clinical trial outcome measure. Structured calendar-based interview procedures can accurately measure the frequency of self-reported marijuana use, but are unable to reliably address issues such as quantity of use or potency. This study compared the quantity and assigned-dollar value among users of blunts, joints, and pipes enrolled in two clinical trials testing pharmacotherapies for marijuana dependence. The timeline follow-back method was modified to incorporate using a surrogate substance to represent marijuana to enable participants to estimate the amount and value used. Blunt users were mostly black and Hispanic, while users of joints and pipes were primarily white. Participants reported that they placed 50% more marijuana in blunts than in joints and placed more than twice the amount of marijuana in blunts than in pipes. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of using a surrogate weight estimation procedure to augment calendar-based methods of measuring self-reported marijuana use. Individual variability in use practices limits the utility of this method to estimating within-subject comparisons, rather than between subject comparisons.

Organizing "mountains of words" for data analysis, both qualitative and quantitative

Qualitative research creates mountains of words. U.S. federal funding supports mostly structured qualitative research, which is designed to test hypotheses using semiquantitative coding and analysis. This article reports on strategies for planning, organizing, collecting, managing, storing, retrieving, analyzing, and writing about qualitative data so as to most efficiently manage the mountains of words collected in large-scale ethnographic projects. Multiple benefits accrue from this approach. Field expenditures are linked to units of work so productivity is measured, many staff in various locations have access to use and analyze the data, quantitative data can be derived from data that is primarily qualitative, and improved efficiencies of resources are developed.

The role of marijuana use etiquette in avoiding targeted police enforcement

Internationally, where marijuana is illegal, users follow etiquette rules that prevent negative consequences of use. In this study, adherence to etiquette is hypothesized to reduce likelihood of marijuana-related police stop/search and arrest. Ethnographers administered group surveys to a diverse, purposive sample of 462 marijuana-using peer groups in several areas of New York City. Findings indicated that lack of etiquette was associated with dramatically higher likelihood of police stop/search or arrest only for users who were Black, male, and/or recruited from Harlem/South Bronx. If these users followed a few identified etiquette rules, their risk of police stop/search or arrest was comparable to that of other users. Implications are that etiquette represents an intentional conscientiousness about marijuana use. Groups that are specially targeted for anti-marijuana enforcement can remediate that heightened risk by following marijuana etiquette.

THE INTERNATIONAL IMPLICATIONS OF QUALITY-OF-LIFE POLICING AS PRACTICED IN NEW YORK CITY

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) has made enforcement of laws against disorder and quality-of-life offenses a central part of their policing strategy. Concomitantly, New York City (NYC) experienced a renaissance in orderliness, cleanliness, tourism, real estate value, and crime reduction, although other problems such as poverty, unemployment, drug abuse, racial tensions and homelessness persist. This paper examines quality-of-life policing practices in NYC, describes the philosophical underpinnings, explores the critical response to the program and presents lessons of potential relevance to other policing organizations in the U.S. and around the world.

Delta9-tetrahydrocannabivarin testing may not have the sensitivity to detect marijuana use among individuals ingesting dronabinol

The purpose of this study was to determine whether Delta(9)-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), a plant cannabinoid, is a sensitive measure to detect recent marijuana use in cannabis dependent patients. It has been purported that smoking an illicit plant cannabis product will result in a positive THCV urinalysis, whereas the oral ingestion of therapeutic THC such as dronabinol will result in a negative THCV urinalysis, allowing for discrimination between pharmaceutical THC products and illicit marijuana products. In a double-blind placebo-controlled trial to determine the efficacy of dronabinol in cannabis dependence, all 117 patients produced a positive urine for the marijuana metabolite 11-nor-Delta(9)-THC-9-carboxylic acid; THC-COOH, but 50% had an undetectable (<1 ng/ml) THCV-COOH test. This suggests that THCV may not be a sensitive enough measure to detect recent marijuana use in all heavy marijuana users or that its absence may not discriminate between illicit marijuana use and oral ingestion of THC products such as dronabinol. We propose that the lack of THCV detection may be due to the variability of available cannabis strains smoked by marijuana users in community settings.

Smoking tobacco along with marijuana increases symptoms of cannabis dependence

AIM

User practices/rituals that involve concurrent use of tobacco and marijuana - smoking blunts and "chasing" marijuana with tobacco - are hypothesized to increase cannabis dependence symptoms.

DESIGN

Ethnographers administered group surveys to a diverse, purposive sample of marijuana users who appeared to be 17-35 years old.

SETTING

New York City, including non-impoverished areas of Manhattan, the transitional area of East Village/Lower East Side, low-income areas of northern Manhattan and South Bronx, and diverse areas of Brooklyn and Queens.

PARTICIPANTS

481 marijuana users ages 14-35, 57% male, 43% female; 27% White, 30% Black, 19% Latino, 5% Asian, 20% of other/multiple race.

MEASUREMENTS

Among many other topics, group surveys measured cannabis dependence symptoms; frequencies of chasing, blunt smoking, joint/pipe smoking, using marijuana while alone, and general tobacco use; and demographic factors.

FINDINGS

Blunt smoking and chasing marijuana with tobacco were each uniquely associated with five of the seven cannabis dependence symptoms. Across symptoms, predicted odds were 2.4-4.1 times greater for participants who smoked blunts on all 30 of the past 30 days than for participants who did not smoke blunts in the past 30 days. Significant increases in odds over the whole range of the five-point chasing frequency measure (from never to always) ranged from 3.4 times to 5.1 times.

CONCLUSIONS

Using tobacco with marijuana - smoking blunts and "chasing" marijuana with tobacco - contributes to cannabis dependence symptoms. Treatment for cannabis dependence may be more effective it addresses the issue of concurrent tobacco use.

The effects of perceived quality on the behavioural economics of alcohol, amphetamine, cannabis, cocaine, and ecstasy purchases

Previous research has indicated that non-dependent polydrug users are willing to pay more money to buy good quality drugs as their income increased. This study sought to examine whether altering the perceived quality of controlled drugs would affect drug purchases if the monetary price remained fixed. A random sample of 80 polydrug users were recruited. All participants were administered an anonymous questionnaire consisting of the Drug Abuse Screening Test for Adolescents (DAST-A), the Severity of Dependence Scale for cannabis (SDS), the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and questions about their drug use. Participants then completed a simulation of controlled drug purchases where the price of alcohol, amphetamine, cannabis, cocaine, and ecstasy remained the same but their perceived quality changed (i.e. unit price increased as the perceived quality decreased). The demand for alcohol was quality inelastic and alcohol quality had no effects on the purchase of any other controlled drug. Demand for cannabis was quality elastic and alcohol substituted for cannabis as its unit price increased. Demand for cocaine was quality elastic and alcohol, cannabis, and ecstasy substituted for cocaine as its unit price increased. Demand for ecstasy was quality elastic and alcohol and cocaine both substituted for ecstasy as its unit price increased. These results suggest that perceived quality influences the demand for controlled drugs and that monitoring the perceived quality of controlled drugs may provide a warning of potential public health problems in the near future.

Civic norms and etiquettes regarding marijuana use in public settings in New York City

This paper shows that active police enforcement of civic norms against marijuana smoking in public settings has influenced the locations where marijuana is smoked. It has subtly influenced the various marijuana etiquettes observed in both public and private settings. The ethnographic data reveal the importance of informal sanctions; most marijuana consumers report compliance with etiquettes mainly to avoid stigma from nonusing family, friends, and associates-they express limited concern about police and arrest.

An Analysis of Alternatives to New York City's Current Marijuana Arrest and Detention Policy

During the 1990s, the New York Police Department (NYPD) instituted a policy of arresting and detaining people for minor offenses that occur in public as part of their quality-of-life (hereafter QOL) policing initiative. The number of NYPD arrests for smoking marijuana in public view (MPV) increased from 3,000 in 1994 to over 50,000 in 2000, and have been about 30,000 in the mid 2000s. Most of these arrestees (84%) have been minority; blacks have been 2.7 more likely and Hispanics 1.8 times more likely to be detained than whites for an MPV arrest. Minorities have been most likely to receive more severe dispositions, even controlling for demographics and prior arrest histories.This paper examines the pros and cons of the current policy; this is compared with possible alternatives including the following: arrest and issue a desk appearance ticket (DAT); issue a non-criminal citation (violation); street warnings; and tolerate public marijuana smoking. The authors recommend that the NYPD change to issuing DATs on a routine basis. Drug policy reformers might wish to further pursue changing statutes regarding smoking marijuana in public view into a violation (noncriminal) or encourage the wider use of street warnings. Any of these policy changes would help reduce the disproportionate burden on minorities associated with the current arrest and detention policy. These policies could help maintain civic norms against smoking marijuana in public.

The potential for accurately measuring behavioral and economic dimensions of consumption, prices, and markets for illegal drugs

There are numerous analytic and methodological limitations to current measures of drug market activity. This paper explores the structure of markets and individual user behavior to provide an integrated understanding of behavioral and economic (and market) aspects of illegal drug use with an aim toward developing improved procedures for measurement. This involves understanding the social processes that structure illegal distribution networks and drug users' interactions with them. These networks are where and how social behaviors, prices, and markets for illegal drugs intersect. Our focus is upon getting an up close measurement of these activities. Building better measures of consumption behaviors necessitates building better rapport with subjects than typically achieved with one-time surveys in order to overcome withholding and underreporting and to get a comprehensive understanding of the processes involved. This can be achieved through repeated interviews and observations of behaviors. This paper also describes analytic advances that could be adopted to direct this inquiry including behavioral templates, and insights into the economic valuation of labor inputs and cash expenditures for various illegal drugs. Additionally, the paper makes recommendations to funding organizations for developing the mechanisms that would support behavioral scientists to weigh specimens and to collect small samples for laboratory analysis-by providing protection from the potential for arrest. The primary focus is upon U.S. markets. The implications for other countries are discussed.

CONDITIONS THAT INCREASE DRUG MARKET INVOLVEMENT: THE INVITATIONAL EDGE AND THE CASE OF MEXICANS IN SOUTH TEXAS

Research on drug trafficking has not been able to discern the exact nature of illegal drug markets and the relationship between their individual and group participants. This article delineates the role of Mexican immigrants and Mexican-American participants involved in the stratified drug market of South Texas. This article synthesizes ethnographic materials drawn from two previous National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) studies in order identify the different types of drug distribution behaviors that occur within the groups, the differentiated roles of individuals, the organizational framework, and most significantly, the processes that link market participants to others outside of the drug market. This illegal behavior can be interpreted as an adaptive mechanism that is a direct response to the marginal economic status imposed by macro socio-economical background factors. As well, we conclude that the specific foreground factors of the opportunities offered by the context, culture, and proximity of the U.S./Mexico border and invitational edges explain this behavior. There are both parallels and particular differences between the South Texas case and the structuring and functioning of informal legal and illegal markets that are characteristic of other economically disadvantaged communities.